Biography

08/31/1834 - 09/24/1903

William Henry Playford (D25) Fayette and Greene Counties 1873-1874 (D40) Fayette and Greene Counties 1875

Early Life:            

William Henry Playford, born August 31, 1833, Brownsville, Fayette County, Pennsylvania; son of Doctor Robert W. and Margaret A. Shaw Playford; Dunlap’s Creek Academy, 1851; Jefferson College (now Washington and Jefferson College), 1854; principal, Waterproof Academy, Texas Parish, Louisiana, 1854-1855; Studied law under Judge Nathaniel Ewing, Sr., Uniontown, Pennsylvania; admitted, bar, 1857; attorney, 1857-1903; elected, District Attorney, Fayette County, 1859-1862; elected, Democrat, Pennsylvania State House of Representatives, 1868-1869; not a candidate for reelection, 1870 term; elected, delegate, Democratic National Convention, 1872; elected, Democrat, Pennsylvania State Senate, 1873-1875; gubernatorial appointee, Committee to Consider Amendments for a New State Constitution, 1874; unsuccessful campaign, Governor of Pennsylvania, 1875; unsuccessful campaign, Pennsylvania State Treasurer, 1875, 1877; chair, Democratic State Convention, 1875, 1876; unsuccessful campaign, Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor, 1878; unsuccessful campaign, judge, Fayette County, 1897; counsel, Pennsylvania Railroad Company; board director, president, Fayette Title and Trust Company, 1899; died, September 24, 1903, Uniontown, Fayette County, Pennsylvania; interment, Oak Grove Cemetery, Uniontown, Fayette County, Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania Politics:

Elected, District Attorney, Fayette County, 1859-1862. 

Elected, Democrat, Pennsylvania State House of Representatives, 1868-1869; not a candidate for reelection, 1870 term. 

Elected, delegate, Democratic National Convention, 1872. 

Elected, Democrat, Pennsylvania State Senate, 25th district, Fayette and Greene Counties 1873-1874, 40th district, Fayette and Greene Counties, 1875.

Gubernatorial appointee, Committee to Consider Amendments for a New State Constitution, 1874. 

Unsuccessful campaign, Governor of Pennsylvania, 1875.

Unsuccessful campaign, Pennsylvania State Treasurer, 1875, 1877. 

Chair, Democratic State Convention, 1875, 1876; 

Unsuccessful campaign, Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor, 1878

Unsuccessful campaign, judge, Fayette County, 1897.

Pennsylvania House of Representatives Biography:

Official Website - PA House Archives Official Website (state.pa.us)

Cited:

Cox, Harold. "Senate Members P". Wilkes University Election Statistics Project. Wilkes University.

From--"Nelson's biographical dictionary and historical reference book of Fayette County, Pennsylvania: containing a condensed history of Pennsylvania, of Fayette County, and the boroughs and townships of the county: also, portraits and biographies of the governors since 1790, and genealogies, family histories and biographies of representative men of the county: illustrated 1900" 

William Henry Playford (1833-1903) - Find a Grave Memorial